2015 Winners
Winners of the Inaugural Excellence in Concrete Construction Awards
ACI recognized 11 winners at the 2015 Excellence in Concrete Construction Awards Gala during The ACI Concrete Convention and Exposition, November 9, 2015, in Denver, CO. The awards were created to honor the most creative projects in the concrete industry, while providing a platform to recognize concrete innovation, technology, and excellence across the globe. To be eligible for participation in the Excellence Awards, projects must have been submitted by an ACI Chapter or one of ACI’s International Partners.
Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations, Marseille, France
Overall “Excellence” Award Winner: Low Rise Buildings
First Place – Category: Low Rise Buildings
MuCEM : Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations. Marseille, France. As an icon of urban rejuvenation located on the banks of the 2600-year-old harbor at Marseille, France, the 3-exhibition story MuCEM building houses the first French National museum outside of Paris. It was visited by 3.4 million people during its first 15 months, much more than expected. At the end of the historic pier where immigrants from all Mediterranean countries once landed, the structure blends with the surrounding mineral and stone landscape, presenting a veiled, cubic appearance that is linked to the city with ultra-thin footbridges. Efficient, wide exhibition halls are surrounded by a sheltered climbing promenade facing the sea up to the scenic terrace. The MuCEM represents an outstanding architectural achievement made possible with the use of outstanding concrete materials and components. The technical performances of ultra-high performance fibre-reinforced concrete (UHPFRC) were uniquely applied for the first time at such a scale for a building structure in order to widen exhibition spaces, minimize material consumption and provide shelter while allowing natural light to filter through.
Project Size: 2 x 72 x 25 m, floor plans 22,000 m², 2 access footbridges 62 + 115 m-long
Project Team Members: Owner: OPPIC; Architect of Record: Rudy Ricciotti; Architecte Engineer of Record: SICA / ASSYSTEM; General Contractor: Dumez (Vinci Group); Concrete Contractor: Bonna Sabla; Concrete Supplier: Lafarge
Nominating ACI Chapter: Paris
Second Place – Category: Low Rise Buildings
Louisiana State Museum and Sports Hall of Fame. Natchitoches, Louisiana. The exposed concrete interior walls and floor of the Museum provide a stunning example of concrete’s versatility and innovative construction techniques. This extraordinary building on Natchitoches’ historic main street has become a regular feature of many architectural and concrete related publications for its cutting edge use of contemporary design coupled with the timeless beauty of concrete. The Museum’s most noteworthy feature are exposed interior concrete walls which are constructed of over a thousand cast stone (architectural precast) concrete members no two of which are alike. The cast stone concrete panels; the biggest being roughly 18’ x 12’ (5.5m x 3.7m), weighing-in at 9,600 lbs. (4,350 kg), convey the architect’s vision to deliver a feeling of weight and mass to contrast with the flowing visual representation of the meandering Crane River Lake which runs through the community.
Project Size: 27,500 square feet, two-stories
Project Team Members: Owner: The Louisiana State Museum; Architect of Record: Trahan Architects; Engineer of Record: LBYD Civil and Structural Engineers; General Contractor: VCC; Concrete Contractor: Advanced Architectural Stone; Concrete Supplier: Advanced Architectural Stone
Nominating ACI Chapter: Louisiana
First Place – Category: High Rise Buildings
Al Hamra Business Tower. Kuwait. Located on the site of Kuwait’s first cinema, which for decades was a well-known landmark that attracted many citizens and visitors, Al Hamra Project builds on this legacy by providing the nation’s tallest skyscraper. The Business Tower is not only the tallest tower in Kuwait, but it shall provide the country’s largest office space. The following achievements of Al Hamra Tower have been recognized by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH): Tallest building in Kuwait. Tallest office building in the Middle East. Tallest concrete structure in the Middle East. 2nd tallest building in the Middle East. 2nd tallest concrete structure in the world.5th tallest office building in the world. 12th tallest building in the world.
Height: 413 m
Project Team Members: Owner: Al Hamra Real Estate Co.; Architect of Record: SKIDMORE, OWINGS & MERRILL LLP; Engineer of Record: SKIDMORE, OWINGS & MERRILL LLP; General Contractor, Concrete Contractor, and Concrete Supplier: M/s. Ahmadiah Contracting and Trading Company KCSC, Kuwait.; Project Manager: Turner Construction – International LLC; Local Design Consultant: Al-Jazera Consultants; Additional Company Participation: Ajial Real Estate & Entertainment Co.
Nominating ACI Chapter: Kuwait
Honorable Mention 1 – Category: High Rise Buildings
TOWER ONE - WORLD TRADE CENTER. New York, New York. Tower One is the largest of four towers that are planned to be constructed on the World Trade Center site in New York City. The four towers will replace the office space that was lost on this site in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack. The building is 104 stories tall with 71 office floors with three million sq. ft. of Class A office space, for an overall height of 1,776 feet. This is currently the tallest building in the Americas. The building was constructed with a concrete core and a steel outside frame. It is probably the safest commercial building in the world. It was decided to reconstruct the new buildings with a hardened core. Concrete was the obvious material of choice for a hardened core. The core was constructed of high-strength concrete.
Height: 1,776 feet
Project Team Members: Owner: WTC TOWER 1 LLC; Architect of Record: SKIDMORE, OWINGS & MERRILL LLP; Engineer of Record: WSP (CANTOR SEINUK); General Contractor: TISHMAN CONSTRUCTION CORPORATION; Concrete Contractor: COLLAVINO CONSTRUCTION COMPANY; Concrete Supplier: EASTERN CONCRETE MATERIALS INC. AND QUADROZZI CORP.
Nominating ACI Chapter: Concrete Industry Board
Honorable Mention 2 – Category: High Rise Buildings
Adobe Corporate Campus - Phase 1. Lehi, Utah. The project is a display of concrete beauty. The exterior walls are board-formed concrete using real cedar planking and invoke an organic texture symbolizing Adobe’s commitment to sustainability. Juxtaposed against the boar-formed concrete are architectural-grade, smooth, exposed concrete walls. The unexpected move of spanning 90 ft. across a public road makes evident Adobe’s ability to embrace innovation and possibility. The project has a post-tensioned, moment frame, concrete Office building clad with a unitized curtain wall system including high efficiency glazing with transparency and tons of natural light. The ends of the building cantilever out 26 ft. for four stories without supporting columns, an extremely challenging feat for our engineers and contractor. A massive Atrium space enclosed within 45 ft. tall glass walls gives unobstructed and stunning views of the entire valley to all within while creating a sense of openness and a gathering place.
Height: 280,000 Square Feet
Project Team Members: Owner: Adobe Systems, Inc.; Architect of Record: WRNS Studio; Engineer of Record: Dunn Associates, Inc.; General Contractor: Okland Construction Company, Inc; Concrete Contractor: Okland Construction Company, Inc; Concrete Supplier: Jack B. Parsons Companies; Concrete Testing Agency: Western Technologies
Nominating ACI Chapter: Intermountain
First Place – Category: Infrastructure
Cable-stayed Footbridge in Celakovice. Celakovice, Czech Republic. The footbridge in Celakovice is connecting the town on the left bank of the Labe River with a popular recreational area on the right bank. It enables comfortable river crossing for pedestrians, cyclists and emergency vehicles up to the weight of 3.5 tons. The contractor implemented an alternative proposal of a segmental bridge deck made entirely of UHPC concrete C130/150 with steel fibre reinforcement instead of the composite deck. The depth of the deck slab is 60 mm only, no bar reinforcement is used. Steel pylons of a total height of 37 meters are fixed on the foundation blocks on bored piles. Stays are arranged in two planes, the lower adjustable anchorages are located on the side of the deck. The deck is supported by fully locked cable-stays. The footbridge over the Labe River in Čelakovice is the first structure in the Czech Republic which has a superstructure made of UHPC. The design and the execution of the footbridge were based on experimental experience with the new material.
Length: 245m, Main Span: 156m
Project Team Members: Owner: City of Celakovice; Architect of Record: KMS Architects, s.r.o.; Engineer of Record: Pontex Consulting Engineers Ltd.; General Contractor: Metrostav a.s.; Concrete Contractor: Metrostav a.s.; Concrete Supplier:TBG Metrostav, s.r.o.
Nominating ACI International Partner: Czech Concrete Society
Second Place – Category: Infrastructure
Interstate 5 Willamette River Bridge Project (Whilamut Passage Bridge). Eugene, Oregon. The longest concrete arch spans in Oregon. The largest bridge replacement project ever undertaken by the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT). The unique and striking modern version of a classic bridge type is reinvented for the 21st century by utilizing high performance materials, state-of-the-art construction practices, and advanced analytical techniques. As one of the few contemporary concrete arch bridges in Oregon, the basic form of WRB emphasizes simplicity, material efficiency, openness, aesthetics, and durability. The design features to achieve these characteristics include: Slender un-strutted ribs, Composite crowns for lateral stability, Compact supports at rib intersections, Double columns for bearing-free thermal joints, Graceful clean lines with an open, uncluttered appearance, Main spans of each bridge are two arch spans of lengths 390 feet (span 2) and 416 feet (span 3) cast with 6.0 ksi concrete.
Length: Northbound: 1984 ft. Southbound: 1759 ft. Width: 67 ft.
Project Team Members: Owner: Oregon Department of Transportation; Engineer of Record: OBEC Consulting Engineers; General Contractor: Hamilton Construction; Concrete Supplier: Knife River
Nominating ACI Chapter: Oregon
First Place – Decorative Concrete
Jean Bouin Stadium. Paris, France. It was originally built in 1925, had insufficient capacity and comfort, and no longer met rugby’s latest requirements for hosting and broadcasting national and international matches. The decision was made to completely rebuild it. The new stadium officially opened in 2013 has three floors below ground level and two to six upper floor levels. It has 20,000 seats, a gymnasium, an underground car park, office spaces and business premises. The building is covered in a 22,000 m2 thin envelope of ultra-high performance fiber Concrete (UHPFC) which, like a mesh on a body, reduces the physical and mental boundary between the building and its environment. In practice, the enormous ultra-thin envelope, is a double-curved dissymmetric structure whose complexity was only made possible by conceiving a gigantic 3D jigsaw made up of 3,600 triangular pieces. The 3,600 UHPFC triangles allow the integration of a maximum amount of construction functions in a single element: primary structural framework, secondary structure, weatherproofing, architectonic skin, and drainage. The primary structure, between the structural framework and the triangle, does not include any metal purlins, which are incorporated monolithically when each element is poured.
Project Team Members: Owner: Ville de Paris; Architect of Record: Rudy Ricciotti Architecte; Engineer of Record: Lamoureux & Ricciotti ingenierie; General Contractor: Léon Grosse; Concrete Contractor: Bonna Sabla; Concrete Supplier: Lafarge
Nominating ACI Chapter: Paris
Second Place – Decorative Concrete
Downtown Doral Park Pavilion ("Micco"). Doral, Florida. Developers and City officials wanted a shade pavilion and band shell, but they also wanted a landmark for the new city. To accomplish this, they commissioned internationally-renowned artist Michele Oka Doner, who envisioned the structure as a “feral” gateway to the adjacent Everglades wilderness. The pavilion was inspired by nature and delivered by technology. The structure is reinforced concrete, strengthened by structural steel spines. Within the 3D model, the engineer kinked, bent and skewed the spines to fit the object. The spines were reinforced and stiffened to withstand hurricane winds. For durability, reinforcing bars and spines were hot-dipped galvanized. The completed pavilion spans 50 feet and extends to a height of 25 feet.
Project Team Members: Owner: Codina Partners; Architect of Record: Local Office Landscape Architecture; Engineer of Record: Douglas Wood Associates, Inc.; General Contractor: Advanced Structural Concepts, Inc.; Concrete Contractor: Advanced Structural Concepts, Inc.; Concrete Supplier: Cemex; Artist: Michele Oka Doner
Nominating ACI Chapter: South Florida
First Place – Repair and Restoration
Mission Bridge Seismic Retrofit using UHPC. Abbotsford, Canada. The Mission Bridge is a major 4-lane, 1-km long crossing of the Fraser River in British Columbia, Canada. It was opened to traffic in 1973. The bridge is located in a high seismic zone and is a critical lifeline link in the Province’s disaster recovery network. The crossing is one of the nine major crossings prioritized for seismic retrofit, spurred in large part by the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake in San Francisco. This project exploited the unique properties of UHPC to solve a significant challenge in the seismic retrofit of large concrete columns. A novel UHPC column jacket as a seismic retrofit was a critical last step in this retrofit project.
Project Team Members: Owner: Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure; Engineer of Record: Associated Engineering; General Contractor: HRC Construction; Concrete Contractor: HRC Construction; Concrete Supplier: Lafarge North America Inc.
Nominating ACI Chapter: British Columbia